


All I Want For Christmas Is You

by ggfj84



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Artist Keith (Voltron), Christmas Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mutual Pining, Olympian Shiro, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Shiro (Voltron), SHEITH - Freeform, Ski Lodge Rom-Com, Snowboarder shiro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-15 13:35:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29436915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ggfj84/pseuds/ggfj84
Summary: Keith and his family always spend the holidays up north at Paladins' Pass, a ski lodge where the Snow Champion Takashi Shirogane practices. It's love at first drawing, and over the next few years, Shiro and Keith see each other once a year, over the holidays.But will their teenage dreams evolve into a life-long love? Or will they simply see each other as "one who got away"?Or the Sheith Ski Lodge Rom-Com.
Relationships: Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 44





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! This was [a twitter story](https://twitter.com/ggfj84/status/1339736870700412935?s=20) I wrote over the holidays that was originally 4k words. I've enjoyed exploring the plot a bit more, so now it's about 11k. I hope you enjoy! The next chapter will probably be in two weeks.
> 
> Thanks!

Keith's favorite holiday was Christmas.

It wasn't always, but ever since he was fourteen, Krolia and Kolivan decided to spend the holiday up at Paladins’ Pass, a quaint village in the mountains with a ski resort.

Keith loved the brisk, mountain air, the snow dust upon his cheeks, and the criminally tight padded top on the up-and-coming boardercross champion Takashi Shirogane.

Adopted by Melenor and Alfor Altea, the owners of Paladins’ Pass, Shirogane trained for much of the year at the resort, and it wasn’t uncommon for him to post pictures on Instagram or Twitter from the slopes or the resort’s ski lodge. Only a couple of years older than Keith, Shiro embodied every teenage fantasy Keith had – from his incredibly tight muscles to this disarmingly handsome smile.

So of course, Keith's favorite time of day was watching Shirogane on his daily pilgrimage across the busy ski lodge to and from the slopes. Keith absolutely died every single time Shiro tugged off his beanie and shook his hair like a Calvin Klein model or smiled at his trainer, a mustached man named Coran, from under his mess of black hair.

Keith took up residence many mornings in the rustic ski lodge, a grand room with a crackling Harlowton stone fireplace, plush furniture with an antique flare, and exposed beams that enhanced the outdoor feel. Large, picture windows showcased the breathtaking mountains and the tiny village far below, and holiday decorations – garland, holly, and lights – were splashed throughout the grand hall.

It was one of Keith’s favorite places in the entire world.

The fifth day into the holiday, Keith conquered the Red Lion Trail with Krolia in the morning and missed Shiro’s lodge promenade, so he settled into one of the lodge’s plush armchairs. He tried to sketch Shirogane from memory, working through his hair and lips, when a warm, teasing voice caught him off guard.

“Not bad but you got my nose wrong.”

Keith squawked and tumbled onto the floor. When he swung back, Shirogane was smiling down at him with that oh-so-charming grin. He still wore his insulated pants from the mountains but switched out his padded top for a super tight, long-sleeved tee. His beanie was adorable, allowing his bangs and some of his black undercut to show.

"Whoops. Didn't mean to scare you there."

He put out his hand, and Keith couldn't tell if it was to help him up or just to shake. It was apparently both because Shirogane tugged him effortlessly to his feet but then refused to release him.

"...uh...thanks...?" Keith managed to mutter. He’d pressed the sketchpad to his chest, so Shiro couldn’t see all the pictures of him.

"Takashi Shirogane." Shirogane’s hold turned into a distinctive shake, pulling Keith back into reality. "Call me Shiro."

"Keith-Keith Kogane."

Shiro’s smile brightened, if that was even possible. “Nice to meet you, Keith-Keith. Do I always have to say both, or will one ‘Keith’ do?”

Heat rushed to Keith's cheeks. "Uh, the one is fine."

Shiro finally let go of his hand and then glanced behind him at the small counter that served as the lodge’s coffeeshop. "Hey, want to grab a hot cocoa? Hunk makes mine with extra marshmallows but don't tell my trainer."

Keith’s stomach bottomed out then. "Uh…sure?"

They huddled in the corner of the lodge, and as one cup of cocoa became two, Keith found the tension melting from his shoulders. Shiro was kind, attentive, and a complete and utter dork, not at all a pretentious, stuck-up champion of the snow.

And Marmora, was he handsome, especially when he got excited about boardercross.

“ – going head-to-head with Lotor next time. He’s a beast – but in a good way! Really dedicated and focused. My dad wants to send me to train with the Team Galra next year, but my mom – not so much. Thinks they are a bit ruthless on the course, which might not be the best trait to learn.” Shiro took a sip of his hot cocoa and then looked at Keith’s. “Hey, you left your marshmallows. You mind?”

Keith jerked and glanced down at his all-but-empty cup. He’d forgotten about his marshmallows, too enamored at watching Shiro just be.

“Be my guest.”

“So what about you, Keith?” Shiro asked between mouthfuls. “What brings you up to Paladins’ Pass?”

His parents, his natural ability to balance on two thin sticks of wood, and of course, the wonderful cabins that lined the mountain, which were perfect to celebrate the holiday and give his parents their privacy.

“So you’re from the coast?”

“Near the city.”

“Oh, wow. That must be awesome. The hustle and bustle, the subways, the amazing food.”

“Up here seems pretty great,” Keith offered and motioned toward the packed lodge, “and you get pretty busy.”

“Yeah, for like six months maybe,” Shiro laughed. “Come up in late April or May, and it’s dead. No one.”

Keith wasn’t fooled. “Like you’re here then. You were out in Austria last year and Sweden the year before that.”

Shiro’s eyes perked up. “Someone’s a fan.”

_Ohshitohshitohshit._

But Shiro didn’t seem all that creeped out. In fact, he flashed a mischievous grin – just before he snatched Keith’s sketchbook. “Let me return the favor!”

Keith lunged across the table. “Give that back!”

“You’re going to have to come and get it!”

And he was off, dashing through the lodge, vaulting over a sofa’s spine, and out the back door. Keith’s heart thundered as he gave chase, dread surging through him. If Shiro flipped through his sketchbook, he’d see what a creep Keith really was, and then he’d want nothing to do with him.

And Keith liked him. _A lot._ Now more than ever.

Shiro was fast, but Keith was faster. By the time Shiro leapt off the back porch of the lodge, Keith snagged him by the waist. They tumbled into the snow, and then Keith climbed on top of Shiro, clawing for his sketchbook. Shiro was laughing, a light and airy sound, and it made Keith pause. He glanced down, seeing the utter joy sparkling in Shiro’s gray eyes and the surprise and delight upon his face. He’d lost his hat, and snow dusted his ruffled hair.

He really was born from snow.

Then Shiro surprised him with a quick hit in the side and flipped Keith into the snow before straddling his waist. He held the sketchbook high.

“I’ll give your book back in exchange for your phone number,” said Shiro.

“…that’s it?” The snow underneath Keith began to melt and seep into his shirt and pants. “Just my number?”

Shiro hummed. “And maybe another cup of hot cocoa before you leave.”

Someone snatched the book from Shiro’s hands. “Stop harassing guests, Shiro, or Dad will make you clean out the stables again.”

Shiro rolled his eyes at the newcomer, a girl about Shiro’s age with long white hair wrapped up in a bun and a dangerous glimmer in her blue eyes. Allura Altea, the snow queen of the half pipe and Shiro’s sister.

“He’ll only know if you tell him,” he said with a wink in Keith’s direction, and Keith thought he’d died right then and there.

Allura hit Shiro hard enough to throw him off Keith, and Keith immediately missed his addictive warmth. “Sorry about my brother. He’s a menace.”

“In a good way!” Shiro argued.

Allura sighed and handed Keith back his sketchbook before helping him to his feet. She even dusted the snow from his pants and shirt. “Hope you’re having a good time…”

“Keith,” he offered.

“Keith,” Allura echoed with a smile. “If there’s anything we can do to make your stay better, just let me know. That includes sending my brother to the stables.”

Shiro came to stand at Keith’s side with a huff.

Keith glanced between the two and then smiled. “I could…go for some more marshmallows and some hot cocoa, maybe sent to my cabin?”

Shiro’s eyes lit up. Allura sighed and shook her head. “Consider it done.” As she started off, she muttered toward Shiro, “Pace yourself, or Coran will have your head tomorrow.”

“You’re just jealous we’re out of peppermint mocha.”

“How can we be out of peppermint mocha? How!”

Keith clutched his sketchbook to his chest and let out a relieved sigh. Once they were alone again, Shiro glanced down at him and finished brushing off his shoulders. “So…think I can still get that number?”

For the rest of the holiday break, Keith met Shiro for hot cocoa and let him steal the marshmallows from his cup. As the new year crept closer and reality pierced their bubble, Shiro came to Keith’s cabin and sat with him on the balcony, overlooking the mountains and the starscape.

“I’ll be at the Olympics in Pyeongchang, then out at Mount Bachelor for the summer, and back out to Squaw Valley before the holidays.”

The Olympics. Shiro was going to the Olympics because of course he was. Keith knew that, but to hear it so nonchalantly…Marmora, Shiro was so _cool._

“You, uh, think I can call you…maybe? Unless you’re busy, and then – y’know, no biggie. I’ll just, um, see you next year.”

Takashi Shirogane, the Snow Champion, wanted to call him?

“S-Sure. Whenever, y’know? You’ve got my number.”

Shiro’s smile was infectious. “Yeah, I do.”

After the holiday was over, Shiro texted him at least once a day. They also became mutuals on social media, and Keith tried not to digitally stalk Shiro. Still, he liked all his posts but stopped himself from commenting on them. He made sure to watch Shiro’s competition, and when he couldn’t because of school or time zones, he made sure to stream it later.

When the Olympics came, Krolia embraced Keith’s new obsession with boardercross, and they watched every heat. Keith sat on the edge of the couch, nervous enough for both Shiro and him, and when Shiro crossed the line that last time, Keith shot to his feet and cheered.

Shiro, the Snow Champion, won an Olympic Gold Medal at the age of sixteen.

Even though it was the middle of the night, Krolia let him stay up and watch the medal ceremony. Then the media called Shiro to their studio for an interview, and Shiro wore his country’s sweatshirt and pants, with his medal predominantly displayed upon his chest.

He spoke about his trainer and coach; his father and mother, about Allura and her support, though he mentioned she could have smuggled more marshmallows into the athletes’ dorms.

As the interview came to a close, Shiro surprised the journalist – and Keith – by asking, “Hey, can I give a quick shut-out?” He grinned at the camera and waved. “Big hello to Keith on the coast! Don't forget to order extra marshmallows on your cocoa."

He winked then, and Keith’s next three sketch books ended up filled with nothing but sketches of Shiro.

The next holiday, Shiro brought his gold medal to their first cocoa session. (Keith stopped himself from calling them "dates.")

"It's heavier than I thought it would be," Keith mused as he cradled the medal and Shiro sipped his cocoa. "Did you bite it?"

Shiro laughed and spooned three marshmallows from Keith's mug. "It's not chocolate."

"But you're supposed to try to bite it."

"Go right ahead."

It was not, in fact, chocolate, which Keith thought was a bit of a letdown.

Over the next two weeks, Keith barely went a few hours without seeing Shiro. They ate breakfast together, hit the slopes together, and on New Year’s Eve, Krolia and Kolivan let Shiro spend the night. Sure, they made Shiro sleep on the couch, and yeah, Krolia might have given Keith a “talk” he never wanted and wished to forget. But it was all worth it when midnight came around.

Shiro and he sat bundled up on the deck of the Koganes’ ski cabin, counting down the minutes and nursing their hot cocoa (with extra marshmallows, of course). Paladins’ Pass always made New Year’s Eve a night to remember with fireworks over the mountain and a coordinated light display upon all the cabins. Surely a sight to behold, but Keith was more enamored by the Olympic Medalist sitting next to him.

The frigid temperatures painted Shiro’s cheeks and nose an adorable pink, and as he blew across his hot cocoa, his lips drew Keith like a warm flame.

After a quick sip, Shiro asked, “So…uh, at midnight, you think I can get a kiss?”

Keith sucked in a quick breath and glanced away to play with the snow on the deck railing. "From who?"

Shiro smiled, all too bright and charming. "Not Henry Cavill."

Keith snorted. "I might want Henry Cavill."

"Ouch. That hurt."

Keith couldn't believe he was saying this, "I'll kiss it better."

Shiro’s eyes brightened, and his lips formed a surprised grin. “Yeah?”

Keith shrugged, awkward. “Yeah. I mean, it’s midnight, right? Tradition and all.”

“Sure, or y’know, cuz I want to.”

Shiro’s blush now rushed down his neck, and Keith was pretty sure it wasn’t from the cold.

When the entire resort counted down to the new year and the fireworks exploded over the mountain, Shiro swooped down to press a quick peck to Keith’s lips.

It didn’t last long, and Keith barely got to breathe. But it was still his first kiss.

Shiro rubbed the back his neck and averted his eyes. “W-Was that okay? Should we try again? Or did that – ”

Keith grabbed the front of Shiro’s jacket and tugged him down, smashing their lips together. Longer. Better. Then Shiro tilted his head. Their lips slid together in a pleasurable way that made Keith warm and tingly, and yeah, there sure were fireworks.

Over the next year, Shiro won gold medals in the World Cup and both the Summer and Winter X-Games.

"What?" Shiro asked between sips the following holiday. "Skateboarding is my hobby."

"Do you eat, sleep, and drink sports?"

"No. I eat, sleep, and drink hot cocoa with marshmallows. I board to feed my addiction."

The holidays came and went all too quick that year, but in between the slopes and the celebrating, Shiro and he enjoyed other activities, too. Of course, he couldn’t look Kolivan in the eye for a whole week after his stepfather walked in on them – he and Krolia were supposed to be at the spa all afternoon! – but it had been worth it when Shiro called him his boyfriend for the first time.

Over the next year, Keith decided to put his all into his art and applied to the nearby Marmora University. He continued to post his sketches online and created a few comic pages based on Shiro's boardercross competitions.

He nailed one particular page with Shiro soaring over a berm. He’d placed the camera under Shiro to really highlight his boyfriend’s muscular features and tight clothing. Using Paladins’ Pass as a background, Keith paid homage to the Snow Champion and his kingdom.

Before he lost his nerve, he posted the page to Instagram. He then put his smartphone into an arm band and headed out to work off his nervous energy.

He returned home to find more than a thousand likes and a message from Shiro.

"Hey! You nailed my nose!"

Shiro had added the post to his story, so his 200k followers could see Keith's obsession with him.

Keith thought he'd die right then and there, but it was a good thing he didn't. Less than a week later, he received an email from a Big Two editor. She wanted to talk to Keith about a potential pin-up for an anthology and perhaps additional work if that went well.

By the time the winter holidays came around, Keith had completed a seven-issue run on _Captain America_ that brought him a sizable social media following and made him a geek household name.

"It's all because of you," Keith said as he brought Shiro a hot cocoa with extra, extra marshmallows.

"Nah." Shiro smiled his thanks at Hunk and then popped a marshmallow into his mouth. "You've been drawing ever since I've known you. I think that might have had something to do with it."

Keith took their usual seat in front of the windows, which looked over the harder runs of the resort – the Black and Red Lions. "I...I don't know what to say,” he said, helpless.

If Shiro hadn’t added it to his story, if he hadn’t been so supportive, if he hadn’t reached out to Keith when Keith was drawing him exclusively like an obsessed fan –

"Tell you what." Shiro sipped his drink loudly; chocolate covered his top lip. "Can I have the original picture you posted?"

Keith blinked. "You want it?"

"Yeah, of course.” Despite his heap of marshmallows, he still stole one off Keith’s mug. “It’ll be like a piece of you is up here with me year-round."

Keith’s cheeks flushed, and he glanced away. “It’s of _you.”_

“Any chance I can get one of you?”

Keith rolled his eyes and told Shiro to eat all his marshmallows.

Once he returned home, he sent the original drawing up to Paladins’ Pass. Shiro posted a picture of it a few weeks later, framed and hanging in his cabin.

As winter gave way to spring, Keith was surprised by Krolia’s support when he shared his decision not to attend Marmora University. Since he’d already become a full-time comic artist, it made sense from him to embrace the role and see if he could make a living out of it.

It paid off. By the time Keith turned nineteen, he was working on a major series for one of the Big Two, brainstorming his own creator-owned book, and attending comic cons across the country.

Shiro continued to dominate the boardercross circuit, and when the Olympics came around again, Keith watched every race.

Part of the Olympics fell over FanExpo Vancouver, so Keith asked the fans at his table to watch the heats with him.

The only race he missed crossed the Marvel Comics: The Next Big Thing panel, but Keith kept his phone in his pocket to check immediately after.

As he answered a question about Cap’s new uniform – “We really wanted to augment the star and still give Cap a way to be covert,” a buzz shocked him. He ignored it the first time. His mom probably forgot what time the panel was.

Another buzz. And another. And another.

“Well, Sarah and I – uh, my editor – we thought the red wouldn’t allow Cap to really – um, to really – get into the action, and we thought – uh…” He shoved his hand down into his pocket and pulled out his phone. “Uh, excuse me for one… _moment_ …”

The first notification was a Twitter News update; the other three were from his mom.

_Shiro crashed. They airlifted him._

An entire body shiver seized Keith as an invisible hand closed about his throat. He struggled to breathe. Tears stung the edge of his eyes. Someone rubbed his back and asked him what was wrong, but Keith couldn’t find the breath to answer.

"Hey, you guys just see Takashi Shirogane crashed?" Axca, another artist, murmured. “They say he’s in critical condition. Hey, Keith - don't you know him?"

Keith lunged for the nearest trash can and heaved his breakfast.

Once he tamed his stomach, he stumbled out of the conference room and ordered an Uber. On the way back to the hotel, he steeled his nerves as best he could and watched the replay his mother sent him (with reservations, of course).

Shiro dominated the course from the start, easily taking advantage of the fast lines in the berms and keeping his jumps low and compact. He even took the whoops spectacularly and pumped with those incredible abs of his.

Leading the pack halfway through the heat, Shiro was on his way to a back-to-back gold medal when Lotor, the Prince of Ice – or so they called him – found too much air. He speed-checked too short, tripped, and slammed hard into Shiro.

Shiro did his best to stay on his board, but a third boarder – Matt Holt – tried to avoid Lotor and hit Shiro at full speed. The force sent Shiro into the plastic guards, tumbling into the snow, and contorting his body in a gruesome and unnatural way.

He came to rest out of sight of the cameras, but a trail of red acted as a guide to his position.

The commenters already offered their two cents on Shiro’s crash – how they’d rarely seen one as terrible as that; how Shiro needed to be airlifted and medics worked tirelessly on him; how Allura actually skipped her event to rush to her brother’s side and refused to offer any more details.

Keith barely heard any of it.

The Winter Olympics were in Milano Cortina, a 12-hour flight from Vancouver. The only direct flight that day had taken off in the morning, but Keith could be on a plane to New York in less than two hours. From there, he could take a flight to Milan and be to Shiro in just under fifteen.

Keith didn’t know how he could help, other than hold Shiro’s hand, if they even let him into the hospital. But all Keith knew was that needed to be close to Shiro, at least in the same city as him, rather than two continents and an ocean apart.

As he got off the plane in Newark, Keith blinked as Krolia waited at his gate. She held her own duffle in one hand and a coffee in the other.

“Our plane is boarding in Terminal B, so we need to move.”

Keith heaved his bag onto his back and stepped off, only for his phone to buzz. His heart fluttered at the name that flashed across the screen.

 _Snow Hunk_.

(Lance, a Paladins’ Pass lift operator, stole Keith’s phone at the resort coffeeshop and changed all his contacts. Keith decided to keep Shiro’s new name.)

He slammed the accept button. "Shiro?!"

An exhausted, pained voice croaked on the other side of the line. _"Hey, Keith. It’s good to hear your voice."_

"Forget about me! How are – ?"

"I could never forget you."

Krolia steered Keith to a bench, and he lowered himself onto it. "Shiro…are…" He swallowed hard. “…are you okay?”

"...I'll survive, Keith. I'll..." Shiro sucked in a wet breath. Was he crying? "I'll live."

That brought a wave of relief crashing down upon Keith. "I'm glad, but...are you okay? Really?"

Shiro sounded so tired, so weak, so far away. "I might never board again. I…it’s bad, Keith, and the doctors, they don’t know if they can repair the damage."

"I'll be there in twelve hours,” Keith vowed and shot to his feet. “I’m already at Newark, but my plane is boarding. So I have to –”

"No!” Shiro croaked and then swallowed again. “No...thank you, Keith. I'm touched. You have no idea, but...not yet. I don't want you to see me like this."

Keith sucked in a sharp inhale. Just how bad were Shiro's injuries? "I'll see you any way I can get you."

The pause on the other end of the line was audible, and Keith could barely keep his nerves from fraying.

"Shiro, please. I want to – I _need_ to see you.”

"Come for Christmas, Keith."

Keith lost his coffee as he flung out his hand. "That's nine months away!"

"I'll be…better by then, and we'll spend the holiday together like always."

“Shiro…” He didn’t want to wait that long to see him. The crash, the aftermath, the blood – all that blood. Keith wanted to wipe it away by holding Shiro in his arms again.

“Keith, please,” Shiro’s usually boisterous voice cracked. “I can’t – I don’t even know what’s happening right now. The doctors, Allura, my dad – it’s all a blur, and I wouldn’t be able to handle it if I lost you, too.”

“You won’t. Shiro – you won’t.”

“Please, just…trust me, okay? Give me this time to recover, and I’ll be ready by Christmas.”

Keith looked up at Krolia, who put a reassuring hand upon his shoulder. “He’s been through a traumatic situation, Keith. Whatever he needs, give it to him.”

Keith collapsed, arms upon his legs. “Can I call you? Text you?”

“Only if you include your drawings.” The smile was back in his voice, even if it sounded weak and forced.

Keith respected Shiro's wishes, though they conversed almost daily via text. Shiro never shared any pictures, and he even went so far as to stop posting on his social media accounts.

Keith suspected that was at his coach's behest, since Shiro loved posting pictures of anything, from his secret-but-not-so-secret hot cocoa addiction to the slopes to any new equipment.

Or perhaps Shiro just didn't have anything he wanted to the world to see.

Keith waited anxiously for the winter holidays and put his all into drawing. He earned two Eisner Awards at San Diego Comic Con that year – Best New Series and Best Penciller/Inker. He also received the Harvey Award for the Book of the Year for his Image work.

With every comic con, Keith tried not to wonder how Shiro received awards, how he felt after crossing the finish line and celebrating with his team, how he felt standing on the podium as his nation’s anthem played.

The winter holidays couldn’t come fast enough.

_To Be Concluded..._


	2. Chapter 2

Keith was already in the car when Kolivan came home from the office on the last Friday before Christmas. Krolia laughed and got behind the wheel, and they took off toward the resort even before Kolivan changed into his winter gear.

Keith fidgeted the whole time. No new messages. No social media posts. Not even an email from Shiro, though they’d spoken for over an hour the night before.

“A cabin? You have your own cabin now?”

“Got it when I turned twenty-one,” Shiro laughed into the phone, light and amused. “I already have my own places in Mount Bachelor and Squaw Valley. Figured it was about time I got one up here.”

“And your parents were okay with it?” Keith knew Shiro lived in the resort’s owner cabin with Alfor and Melenor, high on the mountain and away from the tourist areas. Keith never stepped foot in it, though perhaps that was by design. Krolia and Kolivan always invited Shiro to see Keith at their cabin rather than give Keith and Shiro an opportunity to be alone.

“I’m in one of the resort’s employee cabins,” Shiro said, breaking Keith away from his thoughts. “Hunk lived here before he moved in with Shay.”

“So…not really your own place.”

“I pay rent!”

“What? Twenty bucks a month?”

Shiro snorted. “Try getting a marshmallow in your cocoa tomorrow. Just try.”

Keith all but abandoned Krolia's SUV the moment she pulled up to the ski lodge. He was immediately assaulted by the familiar smell of the coffee bar, the twinkling lights entwined with garland, and the hustle and bustle of the skiers getting ready to challenge the Lion Trail slopes.

Keith expected to find Shiro waiting for him in the lobby – as he had the last four years – but his eyes missed the usual tuff of black hair, the charming smile, and two cups of hot cocoa with an obscene amount of marshmallows.

"Welcome back to Paladins’ Pass, Keith. It's good to see you."

Keith pivoted to come face to face with Allura. She wore her usual reserved smile, curly ponytail, and a Brave the Cold vest.

"You, too, Allura," Keith greeted. Where was Shiro? Would it be rude to ask about Shiro so quickly? But he’d been waiting almost ten months to see his boyfriend, and he didn’t want to wait another second.

Allura smiled, as if she knew who Keith sought. Of course, she did.

"You arrived a bit early this year, so I don’t think Shiro is quite ready yet. But I’m sure he’ll be excited to see you. Why don’t I show you to his cabin?”

Gesturing toward the back of the ski lodge, Allura led Keith out of the side door, up the small mountain of ski-in cabins, and then farther into a forest area where the employee and the owner’s cabins were hidden.

Shiro’s home was a tiny but welcoming structure with multicolored holiday lights strung around the doors, windows, and the roof’s edge. A small porch left just enough room for heavy snow boots and a blow-up reindeer, and Keith couldn’t help but smile at the sight. It looked like _Shiro._

“Well, this is where I leave you but a word of advice.” Allura reached out to touch Keith’s forearm. “Please be kind to my brother. He cares for you quite dearly.”

“I care for him, too.”

Keith dared to think _love._

Allura stared into his eyes, and he guessed she saw what we wanted. A moment later, she smiled and headed back toward the lodge.

Taking a sharp, bracing breath, Keith turned toward the door and knocked.

He adored Shiro, ever since he watched the snow champion stride across the ski lodge. He'd loved Shiro before he knew what love was, and he'd continue to love Shiro. Nothing on that course in Italy would ever change that.

Of course, he never expected Shiro to fling open the door with sodden hair, droplets sliding down his bare chest, and only a towel riding low upon his hips.

"Allura, I told you I would be ready before...Keith?" His dark eyes glowed with starlight. "You're here? Already?"

Keith waited not a second longer and dove into Shiro's arms, locking his own about Shiro's neck and refusing to let go. "You asshole! How could you make me wait to see you for so long?"

"Keith..." Shiro breathed his name.

Keith almost broke from the tenderness of it.

"...I'm sorry," Shiro murmured, shifting to bury his face in Keith’s hair. "I - I didn't want you to see me like this."

Keith leaned back just enough to see the scar across Shiro's nose and the white forelock. "Like what? In a towel?"

 _"A wreck._ Keith..." He waved the remaining part of his right arm, which ended abruptly at the elbow with gnarled scar tissue. "The fall tore me apart."

Keith ruffled the small strands at Shiro’s nape. “I wanted to be the one to put you back together.”

Shiro’s eyes shimmered, but before he could respond, the cold, mountain air stole a shiver from him.

“Um…maybe you’d like to come in?” Shiro offered with a tiny, wicked smile.

Shiro’s cabin was a cozy, one-bedroom place with a kitchenette against the far wall, a small sitting area with a plush couch and a crackling fireplace, and large, half-filled bookshelf. As Shiro headed into his room to change, Keith folded his jacket across the back of the couch and wandered about the room. He enjoyed the distinctively Shiro items – the family pictures on the mantle of Alfor, Melenor, and Allura; the marshmallows upon the counter; and the boards upon the snow-covered deck right outside the sliding glass door.

Keith found his drawing of Shiro hanging just to the right of the kitchenette, where Shiro could see it every morning while making cocoa. When Keith inspected the bookshelf, he found himself holding back a gasp. A few books were college-level medical courses, but most were graphic novels – Keith’s.

Shiro came out then, dressed in a criminally tight Henley with the right sleeve tied at the elbow. His jeans held his backside pleasingly, and Keith held back a laugh at the adorable snowflake socks.

He collapsed to the couch while Shiro made them cocoa with extra marshmallows and even brought over a plate of freshly baked cookies.

They sat in silence for a few moments, drinking and nibbling, until Keith said, "Does it hurt?”

Shiro glanced down at his right arm. “Sometimes. It can feel like burning or shooting pain. Other times pins and needles. Nerve stimulation helps. Acupuncture too. I used to do that for back spasms.”

“Will it go away once you get your new arm?”

Shiro shrugged. “Might help. Matt’s dad works in prosthetics. He said he’ll fit me in the spring and then probably connect a new arm later in the year.”

Keith nodded. Matt Holt wasn’t just another racer. He was also a member of Shiro’s boardercross team, and they trained together in Paladins’ Pass during the holidays. Pidge, Matt’s sister, helped with their stats and admonished them every December 26th when they were late to the slopes and lost seconds on their starts.

Keith enjoyed sitting with her and eating donuts in front of the Olympic athletes.

It only made sense that a family so entrenched in the Olympics would also have a sports doctor.

Shiro mumbled through his cookie, "I don't think I'll compete again."

“What?” Keith almost dropped his cup. "You live for hot cocoa. How will you keep your addiction without boarding?"

Shiro laughed, warm and generous. "I did think about that, but if not for Matt siding over when he did and stopping the bleeding – I'm fortunate to be here.”

Keith gripped Shiro’s knee. "Okay."

“I don’t have anything left to prove – to me or anyone else.”

“You never had anything to prove,” Keith replied, perhaps too sharply. “Whether or not you compete – you’re still the Snow Champion, Shiro. Anyone who has ever seen you on the slopes knows you were born to board.”

Shiro looked up from underneath his curtain of wet bangs. "Yeah...? You believe that?"

“Of course.” Keith reshifted on the couch, pulling up his legs and staring straight into Shiro’s eyes. “Look, you do you, whatever that is. If that's competing again, great! Go for it. If it's not, great, too. Your life is your own. Do whatever makes you happy."

Shiro visibly relaxed, lifting his socked feet and crossing them on the coffee table. “My dad offered me a gig teaching the young guests snowboarding basics. I was thinking about maybe doing that after getting my new arm."

"Do you want to do that?"

Shiro sipped his cocoa slowly, thinking. The deck lights blinked blue, then red, green, and orange. "Yeah. I think so."

Keith huddled close, tucking his body against the curve of Shiro's torso. "Good."

Keith texted his mom and Kolivan to let them know he was with Shiro, and they spent the night laughing, drinking, and reconnecting after their year apart. Shiro recounted his physical therapy, Allura’s new relationship with the Prince of Snow – who came to apologize to Shiro after the accident – and his favorite items from the new menu at the lodge restaurant.

“You’ll have to try his lemon-rosemary roasted chicken with winter green stems. Of course, I ask Hunk to substitute the greens with classic baked mac and cheese. It’s amazing.”

Keith shared his own experiences – from the comic cons to the new editors to trying to surf.

“Apparently I’m not as good as you on a board.”

“Surfing is _hard,_ ” Shiro replied. “Waiting for the wave, using different muscles, and all the salt in the water? No thanks. I’ll pass.”

Shiro made them another cup of cocoa, another, and then another, and he made sure to load them up on marshmallows. Keith liked to pluck his off the top while Shiro drowned his in his cocoa and then swallowed them with each sip. When Shiro attempted to steal some from Keith, Keith tried to evade him and ended up falling upon Shiro’s chiseled chest. His lips hovered just in front of Shiro’s plush ones, and when Shiro breathed, Keith gave into his desires and seized them for himself.

They were warm and sweet from the chocolate, and all their years together culminated to this one moment. Here, now, after so many months apart, Keith wanted his boyfriend all to himself. He wanted to feel Shiro’s warmth underneath him, indulge in Shiro’s soft skin against his, and drown in the excitement he felt every time he thought of Shiro.

Keith gripped Shiro's shirt and tugged him closer, to devour Shiro's gasps and drink in his musk. He slid down until his knees touched Shiro’s hips, their cores close and hard. Shiro responded in kind, his arm wrapping about Keith's back and sliding under his shirt.

Yes. That was exactly what Keith wanted – until Shiro jerked his mouth away. “Keith…”

Keith chased it. "Shhh. Let me take care of you."

"N-No, not like this."

Keith stopped cold, even as he sat astride Shiro, and pulled his hands away from Shiro’s cheeks. "No?"

"Not...now." Shiro's hand slipped from Keith's skin and held his hip. "If we do it now, I'll always wonder if it was pity. Like - you saw me like this and wanted to...I don't know - "

Keith's heart plummeted. "You think I pity you?"

"No, but you might...feel bad for me, at least. And you think this will make me feel better."

Keith rolled his eyes and slid off Shiro’s lap, collapsing onto the opposite side of the couch. "It's not all about you, Shirogane."

"I know." Shiro rubbed Keith's jeaned knee and offered an apologetic smile. "Wait for me?"

"For how long?” Keith reached for a handful of marshmallows, but they wouldn’t alleviate his disappointment. “I'm nineteen, Shiro. I want to do my boyfriend of five years."

Shiro blinked. "You've thought about this?"

Keith grabbed a throw pillow, pulled it over his face, and mumbled, "I have sketchbooks filled with ideas about this!"

"Yeah? Bring them next time?"

Keith threw the pillow at him.

The holiday always came and went too quickly, and at the end, Shiro held Keith's hands at the ski lodge's exit.

"Maybe we can do this again before next Christmas?" Shiro offered. "I won't be on the competition circuit this year. Maybe I can come down and see you?"

Heat flushed Keith's cheeks as he squeezed Shiro's hand tightly. "Yeah, I'd like that."

Kolivan called for him, and Keith started to turn before stopping. “Hey, y’know, you’re kinda a big deal.”

Shiro snorted and rolled his eyes, but Keith squeezed his hands. “No, really. You are, and if you were afraid of how I would treat you after everything…I bet people without an Olympic gold medal worry after losing a limb. I know you’re looking to stay out of the limelight, but – I don’t know. You could do a lot of good back in it, too.”

Shiro bit his bottom lip and looked away, so Keith pressed up onto his toes to peck his lips. “Hey. Don’t get lost in there. And if you do, I’ll find you, okay?”

Shiro let out a breath and showed Keith that quiet, disarming smile again. “Okay.”

Keith was halfway home when he received a notification that Shiro had posted on Instagram for the first time in ten months. It was a simple post of his and Shiro’s hot cocoa mugs, taken some time during the last two weeks. Marshmallows heaped on top of Shiro’s, which sported a board as its handle. Keith’s cup, a simple red cup with snowflakes upon it, was topped with red sprinkles.

“You can never have too many marshmallows – or days with your boyfriend. See you soon, @KoganeDraws!”

Keith blushed the rest of the way home.

After that, Shiro reentered the world. He posted weekly on social media, commented on Keith’s posts, and even traveled with Matt and his former boardercross team to California.

“Matt and I have been rooming together since our first year on the circuit,” Shiro said his first night away from Paladins’ Pass. “It’s a snowboarder thing.”

“It’s a superstitious thing,” Keith paused. “…is that why you used to text me before every heat?”

“Nah. That was a romantic thing.”

Keith could hear the wicked smile in Shiro’s voice.

At the training facility, ESPN recorded a profile on Shiro. They followed him through his daily routine, including physical therapy and his doctor’s appointments. They spoke to him about his feelings, about the pain, about his future.

“I’m lucky,” Shiro said with a jerk of his shoulder. “I had my family around me, my friends. Matt saved my life. Allura forwent her event for me and lost her chance for back-to-back medals. My boyfriend was on the next plane out. And all of them – they supported me when I didn’t know what to do and even who I was when not on the circuit.”

“Who are you now, Shiro?”

Shiro’s smile was beaming and beautiful. “I don’t know quite yet, but I’m excited to find out.”

Shiro finally made it back to the coast and then down to Marmora by the middle of spring. He was scheduled to spend a whole two weeks, and Keith took them off to show Shiro around the city.

But first he made sure Shiro arrived between 2:34 and 5:47 p.m.

When Shiro showed up at the Koganes’ Cape Cod a little after three, Keith threw open the door, snatched Shiro’s collar in double-fisted grip, and tugged Shiro inside. He then kicked the door shut and assaulted Shiro with a soul-sucking embrace.

Keith broke their kiss and pressed his forehead against Shiro’s heaving chest. “Do you – Do you still want to – "

"Don't stop,” Shiro urged, and then they were running up the stairs to Keith’s room.

Unlike the previous years, they went less than two months without seeing each other. Sometimes Keith made the trek up to Paladins’ Pass; other times Shiro came to stay with Keith in Marmora. Shiro traveled with Keith to San Diego for the annual comic convention while Keith accompanied Shiro to Aspen to watch Allura in the X-Games. When Shiro's surgery came around in the summer, Keith took a few weeks off to be with Shiro during his recovery.

Shiro’s new arm was a work of art – a silver and black appendage that would function as if it was Shiro’s original arm. Pidge showed him the semantics on her laptop as they waited for Shiro to recover.

“Warm, cold, touch – the works. I mean, it might feel a bit cold to you, but to him, it’ll be the same.”

“It won’t hurt him?”

“It’ll hurt,” Matt said, hunched over. His fingers were folded together, elbows upon his thighs. “Not as badly as the day he lost his arm, but – ”

“He doesn’t even remember most of that day,” Pidge snorted.

“Yeah – because I slammed into him and then he – ”

“Lotor was the one who crashed, and you were trying to avoid him.” Keith couldn’t tear the memory of the heat from his mind, no matter how desperately he wanted to. “If you hadn’t, you might have killed Lotor. Maybe Shiro, too. But you gave up your own medal that day to save him.”

“But I also – ”

Keith came to sit next to Matt and smacked his knee with his own. “You saved Shiro that day, and I know he feels the same way.”

“Thank you!” Pidge called. “Told ya! Now can we stop the pity party and go for some grub? I’m starving.”

Keith waited while Matt and Pidge brought back sandwiches and drinks. Lotor joined them by midday, having snuck away from his trainer, and Allura and Dr. Holt came out from the room just before the evening.

“He’s groggy and tired, but the surgery went well. He should recover over the next few weeks and regain full use of his appendage by winter.”

Since Alfor and Melenor stayed by Shiro’s bedside, Allura and Lotor, then Pidge and Matt went into see him. Keith went last, though Shiro’s tender smile made the wait worthwhile.

“Hey, babe. Miss me?”

Keith settled on the edge of Shiro’s bed and smiled. “Every moment. How are you feeling?”

“Tired. Really tired.” He grunted and lifted a black and silver hand toward Keith’s cheek. Keith marveled at how already Shiro could be moving his new appendage, but he blinked when Shiro’s fingers stopped just inches from his skin.

Keith forged the distance between them, resting his cheek against the palm of the cool hand and savoring Shiro’s touch once more. Shiro’s smile only grew more indulgent, more loving, and then the fingers cupped the edge of Keith’s face and chin.

“Stay tonight?” Shiro asked, eyes drooping closed.

As Shiro’s hand began to fall, Keith snatched it and cradled it in his lap. “I’ll here be when you wake up.”

When Dr. Holt allowed Shiro to return home a few days later, Shiro looked up as they wheeled him through the hospital door. “You’ll be up for Christmas, right?"

"Yup.” Keith slipped his hands into his pockets. “Mom booked our usual cabin before we left last year."

"Good." Shiro grabbed Keith’s hand and jerked him down for a quick kiss. "Missing you already."

That holiday, Keith spent more time at Shiro’s cabin than his own parents’, though he shared dinner with Krolia and Kolivan almost every night and joined them on the slopes. For Christmas Eve, Krolia welcomed Shiro into their cabin and even placed presents for him under the tree.

“You brought me a boot and glove dryer?” He opened another gift. “And face cream?”

“The first one is for you.” He motioned toward Keith, who was in the middle of sipping his cocoa. “The other’s for him.”

Keith choked. He certainly hated when Shiro had a scratchy chin, but that wasn’t something he wanted his mom to know.

When he opened his gift from Shiro, his heart almost leapt from his chest. It was a simple key.

An adorable flush overtook Shiro’s cheeks and spread to his neck. He rubbed the back of his head and glanced away.

“Y-You probably have so much to do in the city, and I know it’s not really doable. Not now, but maybe sometime this year, you could spend some more time up here…? With me?” His words came fast and breathless then. “I know that’s not feasible. I don’t know why I offered that, but I just really miss you when you’re not here. I thought, maybe during the winter months, maybe you could – ”

Keith caught Shiro’s hands and then leaned over to press a quick kiss to Shiro’s lips. “Are you asking me to move in with you?”

“Yes. If we can make it work.”

Keith squeezed Shiro’s hands. “We will.”

They did. Keith went back with his parents after the holidays but returned by the end of January with his work materials. He stayed with Shiro through the end of the season, which for Paladins’ Pass was late into April.

In May, Shiro accompanied Matt and Allura back out to Squaw Valley but settled in Marmora by the end of July. He stayed with Keith until late October, at which time he returned to Paladins’ Pass.

Keith’s work increased, too, and with his latest slate of projects, his editor called him into the city to discuss a new contract. He debated the options, talked with his agent, and then returned home to find Kolivan getting into his truck – along with Shiro.

Shiro didn’t have a duffle or any luggage of any kind, though he wore his usual beanie and winter jacket. Before Keith could honk, Mr. Ozar pulled out of his driveway, blocking Keith’s car and allowing Kolivan to pull away.

“Hey Mom!” he yelled as he came in and threw his bag on the couch. “Was that just –”

As he came around the corner into the kitchen, he stopped short at coffee mugs, marshmallows upon the table, and tears in his mother’s eyes.

“Mom, were you crying?”

“Oh, I was just cutting some onions.” She wiped her face with a dish towel and then gently touched his cheek. “Kolivan will be late today. He called and said he has some business down by the arena.”

Near the train station, Keith noted.

“Why don’t we order dinner in, hm? From that Italian place you love?”

They only had it on special occasions, but Keith wasn’t about to complain.

Kolivan returned about two hours later – rush-hour traffic, he said. Since neither of his parents mentioned Shiro, Keith decided to stay quiet. The holidays were less than three weeks away, anyway.

Shiro texted him later that night and then called him the next morning. He was eager to talk about Keith’s plan for the coming break.

“Yeah, we’ll be up on Friday evening, and I’ll bring my stuff to stay into the new year.”

“Okay, I’ll make sure not to book any lessons in the afternoon. Think we can get dinner?”

“And some of Hunk’s hot cocoa, of course.”

“Not to surprise you, but my dad asked us to move.”

Keith paused in the middle of packing. “What? He took our cabin?”

“Yeah, sorry, babe. He’s promoting Lance this week, so he asked me to take a different cabin up the mountain a bit. I promise. I decked it out for the holidays, lights and all.”

“Oh, so…you already moved our stuff?”

“Yeah, yeah. I think you’ll like it. It’s a bit bigger than the old one, and it’s closer to the slopes.” He added under his breath, “Closer to my parents, too. They’re seriously right next door.”

Keith threw a sweater into his bag. “Will you be there?”

“Yeah. Of course.”

“Then it’ll be home.”

Kolivan ended up with extra vacation days and took that last Friday off, so Krolia pulled up to Paladins’ Pass just after one. From behind the front desk, Allura offered a welcoming smile and the keys to Krolia and Kolivan’s cabin.

“Shiro should be finishing up the snow bunnies’ lessons. You can find him out by the Yellow Lion Trails.”

Sure enough, Keith found Shiro out the back entrance of the lodge and up a tiny hill, by the training area for the would-be snow champions.

The reigning champion was a vision. Dressed in a black Gore-Tex jacket and an adorable beanie, he was a stark contrast against the powdery snow. Sunglasses kept the sun glare out of his eyes but allowed Keith to admire his genuinely carefree smile. His fitted snow pants outlined his alluring backend, which promptly fell to the cold powder as he demonstrated a roll over. Once he stood upon his board again and shuffled back and forth, he plopped onto the snow again and urged the snow bunnies to try with him.

Keith retreated to the lodge coffeeshop and grabbed his first cocoa of the holiday. Then he sat back down to watch as Shiro walked the tiny boarders through skating, the walk uphill, one-foot riding, and eventually the heel slide. He ruffled their hair and celebrated every victory, and then promised he’d see them all tomorrow to show them toe slides, board straight, and eventually turning.

Before the class ended, a group of ski mothers and fathers joined him, and one of the younger women asked him, “Which one’s yours?”

Keith laughed and nodded toward Shiro, who pushed himself up with his ass toward Keith. “The big one.”

The woman raised an eyebrow. “Hm. Well, aren’t you lucky?”

“Every day.”

When Shiro noticed Keith watching, he waved with a disarmingly bright smile, and Keith couldn’t help but return it.

The lesson ended a few minutes later, and Shiro glided across the snow to his side, taking Keith by the hips and kissing him breathless.

“Hey, babe. Miss me?”

“Every moment.”

Shiro sent Keith’s cup a dirty gaze. “Not enough to bring me a hot cocoa, huh?”

Keith reached inside his pocket and pulled out a small bag of marshmallows. “I know what my man likes.”

They retired to their new cabin, a slightly bigger two-bedroom place with a full kitchen, a laundry room, and a side room that Shiro told him to avoid.

“It’s not done, and the maintenance crew said to keep it shut until they can come back after the holiday.”

Shiro had been right about the decorations, with garland and lights strung about the living room, over the mantle, and around the kitchen counter. He hung their stockings, put up a tiny tree in the corner, and made sure to stock up on hot cocoa and marshmallows.

After Shiro changed and they headed out again, he declared, “Dinner’s on the house!”

Keith snorted. “What do your parents think about that?”

“They better think I bring in enough money from private lessons that they can pay for one dinner with my boyfriend.”

“Or I can pay. I am a guest here, y’know. That’s how the resort stays in business – by having paying guests.”

“You’re a guest? Really?” Shiro opened the back door to the lodge and let Keith enter first. “And here I thought you were one of the family.”

“Keith!” Lance called, walking toward them in his heavy jacket and thick boots. He lifted up a fist. “Welcome home, man!”

Pidge yelled at him from the coffeeshop, while Matt smacked him in the shoulder as he exited the elevator. Lotor waved to them from behind the front desk, where he kept Allura company for the night, and Hunk came out from the kitchen to see them once they were seated in their usual booth.

“No, no, no, I will choose your courses tonight.” He snatched their menus and called their waitress, Romelle, to bring them two glasses of the resort’s finest wine. “You just relax and enjoy yourselves.”

The entire affair seemed surreal with the piano playing, the holiday lights strung about, and the handsome, lovely, charming man across from him. Keith enjoyed the time to reconnect with Shiro and admire his boyfriend who taunted him in a tight dress shirt, jeans that fit like a second skin, and a smile Keith could watch forever.

As they left the restaurant, Krolia and Kolivan were entering. Krolia stopped Shiro with a hand upon his arm.

“Shiro, we would be honored to have you at Christmas dinner this year. Will you join us?”

Keith’s hand in Shiro’s squeezed, and he had to bite his lower lip to keep from grinning like an idiot. His boyfriend and parents celebrating all Christmas together? It would be the perfect holiday.

Shiro, however, hesitated. “I usually have dinner with my parents and Allura. Lotor’s even joining us this year.”

“Do you think they would join us?” Kolivan asked. “We have reservations at the Ice Blade Lodge. I can call and see if we can up the number in our party.”

“If they don’t, let me know. I might know the owner,” Shiro laughed and winked.

Christmas dinner was festive and all but perfect. Alfor arranged for a private room in the back of the lounge, which housed a large table, a wine bar, and its own Christmas tree. Instead of the usual preset menu, they enjoyed a family-style dinner with all the trimmings – turkey, ham, stuffing, three types of potatoes, and a tray of desserts.

The wine loosened their tongues and amplified the merriment, and Keith enjoyed learning about the parts of Shiro’s life his boyfriend hadn’t shared.

“Takashi came to live with us a bit after we brought the resort,” Melenor said, resting her hand upon Alfor’s. “All of three and so precocious.”

“Said he would be an Olympian one day,” Alfor added.

Melenor leaned toward Krolia, as if sharing a secret. “Of course, he wanted to be a champion polo player, mind you.”

Shiro rolled his eyes. “The horses up here are only for sleigh rides, so I had to settle for snowboarding.”

“And skateboarding,” Allura added. “He used to ride right through the lodge during the summer, frighten the guests.”

Melenor lifted her wine glass for a refill. “You say that as if you didn’t encourage him, Allura. Or when you used to pass each other cookies, were those bets on something else?”

Shiro coughed; Allura looked away. Laughter consumed the table.

“Thought I didn’t know,” Melenor huffed. “As if I don’t know everything that happens at this resort. Isn’t that right, dear?”

Alfor’s cheeks flushed, and he fidgeted with his napkin. “Of course, dear. Of course.”

Shiro leaned over to whisper to Keith. “Dad paid for Lance to go to college, Hunk to go to culinary school. He also housed Lotor up here a few years after his parents kicked him out.”

“And your mom doesn’t know?” Keith asked.

“Depending upon the day, she sometimes pretends not to. It’s how I can sneak marshmallows before dinner.”

“Krolia, Kolivan.” Alfor raised his glass toward the Koganes. “As you can see, it was challenging raising two athletes at the resort. Tell us, how was it raising an inspiring artist?”

Oh, no. They turned the tables on him, and Keith found himself reaching for his own glass.

“Keith used to think my walls were his canvass,” Krolia laughed as she rubbed the space between Keith’s shoulder blades. “Crayons, pens, one time even mud – for Keith, the world was his sketchpad until we brought him an endless supply of them.”

Kolivan refilled Keith’s glass. “We told him he had to apply to college, but then he goes and gets a full-time job even before he graduates high school.”

“That was Shiro’s fault,” Keith interjected.

Shiro snorted and stole a wayward berry from Keith’s dessert plate. “I don’t think you can blame me for simply sharing one of your pictures.”

“He’s so busy nowadays.” Krolia took a sip of her after-dinner coffee. “He’s in the city at least twice a week to see his editor, then at a conference once a month – ”

“They’re called ‘comic cons,’ Mom.”

“ – not to mention that ‘architect job’ they’re tossing at him.”

Shiro blinked as if he was blindsided, which Keith guessed he was. “What job?”

“It’s nothing,” Keith assured. “Really. Just…some brainstorming work.”

 _“Keith,”_ Kolivan admonished before addressing the table. “They’re asking him to design some new universe alongside the writers. Exclusive work. Benefits and everything, with a co-creator title.”

Keith wanted to sink below the table. It was an exciting offer, one Keith thought long and hard about, but the pressure was staggering. A multi-year event with all new outfits and an entire universe to design, alongside veteran writers with incredible storylines that Keith couldn’t wait to explore –

But what if they didn’t like his designs or ideas? What if they thought they were uninspiring or unoriginal? What if the fans hated his new take on their favorite characters?

“Wow, _Keith.”_ Shiro patted his knee and offered Keith a warm, encouraging smile that crinkled the skin around his eyes and mouth. “That sounds like amazing opportunity. You deserve the recognition. Have you taken it yet?”

“No. My editor gave me until the end of the year to decide.” Keith ducked his head; his ears burned. “I don’t know. It’s a lot of work and pressure. And I’ll be in and out of the city all the time to meet with the editors and writers. It’ll be crazy.”

“After all you’ve drawn and the way you’ve evolved your skills – if anyone can impress them, it’d be you.” Shiro’s gray eyes glimmered brightly in the holiday lights, and Keith just wanted to pull him down right there and then, especially when Shiro said with such conviction, “You can do this.”

“You…You believe that?”

“I do. I can’t wait to see what you create.”

Everything seemed perfect. The candlelight, their friends and family, the disarming smile that stole all of Keith’s breath and left him clamoring for more. Keith didn’t know how he lived without the light of Shiro’s enchanting eyes or the warmth of his hand in his own.

Forever was on the tip of his tongue, and Keith couldn’t wait to enjoy married life with the only man he’d ever love.

Shiro took a deep, shivering breath, and he slid his hand into his jeans’ pocket. This was it. Right here, right now was why Shiro came down to Marmora to speak to Krolia and Kolivan, why Krolia cried, why Allura let out a tiny little squeal, and why Melenor and Alfor looked like they were about ready to cheer –

But an uncertain expression flickered through Shiro’s eyes. His smile grew crooked and pained, and then he turned to Alfor.

“H-Have you told the Koganes about the new cabins? They might want to upgrade next year.”

Keith blinked, dazed and confused. He let out a loud exhale and struggled to find even footing when Krolia’s hand seized his. She smiled in an apologetic way – like she could feel the invisible hand that reached inside Keith’s chest and squeezed his heart.

Had he misread Shiro? Had he misread their relationship? All his time, he thought Shiro and he were on the same page, but perhaps they weren’t even in the same story?

Alfor and Melenor also exchanged bewildered glances before Alfor launched into the resort’s new expansion, set to open the following year, and it wasn’t long after that, dinner ended.

“I’m going spend the night with my parents,” Keith told Shiro, whose eyes immediately darkened. Shiro didn’t put up a fight. He seemed resigned to their separation, offered one last holiday greeting, and then headed home.

“I’m going to get some hot cocoa,” Keith told his parents. “I’ll see you back at the cabin.”

Krolia kissed him on the forehead and told him not to be too late, while Kolivan gave him money like he was fourteen again.

The time alone allowed Keith time to think and wonder. Why had Shiro come down to speak with Krolia and Kolivan if not to propose? Maybe he was asking them when was the best time to break up? They’d been together since Shiro was sixteen. Perhaps Shiro wanted more than just Keith. Perhaps he wanted to move on, and he was going to wait until after the holidays. But then why would he accept Krolia’s invitation to dinner and bring his family?

“Congratulations!” Lance shouted across the coffee shop before rushing through the holiday crowd to bounce in Keith’s face. “Can I see it? Let me see it!” Lance snatched Keith’s hand and wigged the fourth finger. “Where is it?”

Keith didn’t have it in him to exasperated today. “Where what is?”

“The ring!” Lance scowled. “You didn’t say no, did you? He’s been practicing on Hunk since Halloween.”

“Who’s been practicing what? What are you talking about?”

Lance rolled his eyes. “Shiro’s proposal! What else would I be talking about?”

Keith’s insides flashed cold, and he refused the spark of hope that threatened to warm him again. “Shiro…wanted to propose?”

Lance’s eyes shot wide. “He – Wait, he hasn’t yet? He said he was going to do it at – oh, shit! Please don’t tell him I spoiled it! He’ll kill me. He’s been looking forward to this, and he even got that new cabin for you guys to – Keith! Keith! Where are you going? Don’t tell him I told you!”

Keith was already racing across the great room, out the lodge’s back doors, and up the mountain toward the year-round cabins. He stamped the snow off his boots and jeans as he came up on Shiro’s porch and threw the door open. Shiro shot up from the couch, so devastating handsome in a Henley, jeans, and Christmas socks.

“Keith, what’s –”

“Why didn’t you propose?”

Shiro’s mouth dropped open, and when nothing came out, Keith persisted.

“You talked to my parents. You set up dinner with both our families. It was perfect. All of it was perfect!” He slammed shut the door without breaking eye contact. “Why didn’t you ask me?”

Shiro squirmed under his unrelenting glare, looking away and rubbing the back of his neck. “Coran. He came to see me a few weeks ago. I was just helping Matt to practice the Parallel Giant Slalom, and…well, he timed me without me knowing. He thinks I can make a run for the World Cup, if not join the old team.”

“Oh, wow, Shiro. That’s wonderful!” He paused, seizing Shiro’s hands and rubbing his thumbs along the knuckles. “…is it wonderful?”

“I…I think so.” Shiro’s lips twisted upward in the corner and shrugged. “I…I’ve been missing it, missing the competition, and…I don’t know. Maybe if this works out well…we’ll see.”

Keith blinked and shook his head. “So…that means you’ll be back on the circuit?”

Summers in California, worldwide events and training, sponsorships, commercials, women and men fawning over Shiro at every turn. Did that mean Shiro didn’t want to be with him anymore?

Shiro gripped Keith’s hands before brushing the bangs out of his face. “Your new job – it caught me off guard. I…I didn’t know with you going in and out of the city – I can’t ask you to give up such a wonderful opportunity for me.”

“And I can’t ask you to give up your second chance.” Keith stepped forward, seizing Shiro’s hands in his own. “But I want you.”

“And I _need_ you.” Shiro’s forehead was warm and lovely when he pressed it against Keith’s. “I can spend some time in the city, but there will be times I’ll be away for weeks at a time.”

“Do you still want to be together?” _Do you still want me?_

Shiro pecked his lips for a quick kiss. “More than anything. If it’s the circuit or you, I’ll always choose you.”

“You don’t have to.” Keith let go of Shiro’s hands to wrap his arms about his lover’s neck. “We’ll make it work.”

“But –”

“We’ll make it work,” Keith insisted. “I work from home most days, and if my editor really wants me on the new project, she’ll work with me. I know she will. And I can spend a few weeks out by you in California, maybe take a few more comic cons out there, and maybe you can spend a few weeks training back here.” He leaned close to Shiro, lips only inches away. “It’s not all or nothing. We can make it work as long as we _want_ to make it work. And you do, right?”

Shiro smiled, hands gripping Keith’s hips, and then bumped the second bedroom door open with his backside.

Keith’s eyes widened as he saw that the cabin’s bedroom wasn’t actually unfinished but instead a studio. Large floor-to-ceiling windows stretched across the far wall, while a brand-new desk setup – a drafting table, a side table, and a comfy chair – took up most of the room. There was a Wacom Intuous Pro Medium, a Cintiq pen display, and Keith’s favorite brands of pens and sketchbooks.

“You made me a studio?”

Shiro shrugged. “You can set it up anyway you want, but I asked Krolia and Kolivan for some advice. Even called a few of your artist friends. Figured this was at least a good start.”

Keith smiled and grabbed Shiro by the neck, pulling him down for a searing kiss. “Yeah, yeah it is.”

_The End_

* * *

_Omake_

Shiro fumbled his pocket and pulled out a small package of treats – marshmallow rings.

“I love you very marsh.”

Keith laughed and pecked his fiancé on the lips. “How long did you work on that?”

“Longer than I care to admit.” Shiro then reached inside his back pocket and pulled out a velvet box with two golden rings. “Not sure when you want to get married, but I was thinking maybe before next holiday. Too soon?”

Keith smiled. “Not soon enough.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm currently doing a story giveaway. Find out more [here!](https://ggfj84.tumblr.com/post/644316341395931136/im-giving-away-stories-to-followers-do-you-want)


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